Yalda Moaiery (Persian: یلدا معیری) is an Iranian photojournalist, she is known for war, protest, natural disaster, and conflict photographs.[1][2][3] In 2019, she gained international notoriety after Donald Trump had used one of her photos on social media to support an attack on Iran, which she publicly spoke out on.[4] During the Mahsa Amini protests in 2022, she was one of around twenty journalists arrested in Iran.[5][6][7] She is a member of the Iranian Photojournalists Association (IPJA).[8]

Yalda Moaiery
Persian: یلدا معیری
NationalityIranian
Occupation Photojournalist
Known forwar photographs, natural disasters photographs, protest photographs, conflict photographs

Background

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Throughout her career, Moaiery has documented wars, conflicts and natural disasters in parts of the world including Iran, Afghanistan, Iraq and Lebanon. Her photographs have been featured in international magazines and newspapers, such as Time, Newsweek, San Francisco Chronicle, Le Monde and El Pais.[9]

Moaiery’s 20-year career has taken her around the world but her work also focuses on life in Iran, including mass protests in 2019 over rising fuel prices. Her portfolio includes photo essays on women serving in the Iranian military and the legacy of Iran’s Supreme Leader Khomeini.[10]

In 2019, she gained notoriety when she spoke out against President Donald Trump after he used one of her photos on instagram to attack the Iranian government.[11][12][4]

Arrest

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Moaiery was arrested on September 19, 2022[13] by security agents in downtown Tehran while covering the protests that erupted after the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the morality police in Tehran.[12][14][15] Moaiery was reportedly hit during her arrest and forced into a van with tens of other female protesters before being taken to Qarchak prison, a female-only detention facility in the city of Varamin, southeast of Tehran.[9]

After the news of Moaiery’s arrest surfaced, the Tehran Province Journalists' Association issued a statement demanding her immediate release, saying that she had been detained “while staunchly defending colleagues’ freedom of movement in covering events”.[16] She was released on bail on December 20, 2022.[6][17]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Iran hunts down anti-hijab activists". Deutsche Welle (DW). October 7, 2022. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
  2. ^ Ta, Ha Minh (October 1, 2022). "Why Threats to Journalists are Increasing in Iran". Nieman Foundation. Harvard University. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
  3. ^ "کمیته حفاظت از روزنامه‌نگاران خواستار آزادی یلدا معیری، عکاس مطبوعاتی، شد". رادیو فردا (in Persian). Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  4. ^ a b Matamoros, Cristina Abellan (2019-02-13). "'Trump hurt me and my family, then he stole my photo to blame Iran'". EuroNews. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  5. ^ "Iran steps up journalist, activist arrests as anti-regime protests rage". France 24. 2022-09-27. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
  6. ^ a b "Irán libera a la fotógrafa Yalda Moaiery tras pasar 92 días en prisión por documentar las protestas". El Español (in Spanish). 2022-12-20. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  7. ^ "Iran Arrests Prominent Activist, Journalist: Reports". Barron's. Agence France Presse (AFP). September 23, 2022. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  8. ^ "دستگیری یلدا معیری عکاس مشهور ایرانی در اعتراضات تهران" [The arrest of famous Iranian photographer Yalda Meiri during the protests in Tehran]. IranWire (in Persian). Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  9. ^ a b "Rights watchdog condemns arrest of Iranian photojournalist". Arab News. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Calls for Iran to Free Female Photojournalist Detained at Protest". Voice of America. 22 September 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  11. ^ Amiri, Farnoush (February 13, 2019). "Trump's tweet of Iran protest photo leads the photographer to slam his 'devastating' policies". NBC News. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
  12. ^ a b "'I write what they tell me to': Iran's crackdown on journalists intensifies". The Guardian. 16 October 2022. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Iran: Photojournalist Yalda Moaiery Arrested Covering Anti-State Protest". Coalition For Women In Journalism. September 21, 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
  14. ^ "Iranian photojournalist Yalda Moaiery arrested during anti-state protests". Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). September 20, 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  15. ^ Tabrizy, Nilo (2022-10-22). "Postcard from Teheran". Association of European Journalists. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
  16. ^ "Famous Iranian Photojournalist Arrested Covering Protests in Tehran". IranWire. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  17. ^ "یلدا معیری، عکاس خبری به قید وثیقه آزاد شد" [Yalda Moaiery, Photojournalist, was released on bail]. Sharghdaily.com (in Persian). 20 December 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.